HIV rate highest in New York's Harlem, Morningside Heights neighborhoods

A report from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene shows that the city's Central Harlem and Morningside Heights neighborhoods have the highest HIV rates of 42 neighborhoods in the city's five boroughs, the Columbia Spectator reports. The neighborhoods have high African-American and Latino populations, and the infection rates there are the highest among blacks, Latinos, and those who've been incarcerated, according to the report. The neighborhoods' HIV-infection prevalence overtook the Manhattan neighborhood of Chelsea, which has a large gay-male population, as the section of the city with the highest HIV prevalence in this year's survey. About 2% of the residents of Central Harlem and Morningside Heights are infected with HIV. New York state accounts for about 20% of the nation's HIV cases. New York City has the highest concentration of HIV cases in the state, with the borough of Manhattan home to the majority of the city's HIV-positive residents.